Personal Data Protection and Privacy Policy
Bilgin & Albayrak Legal & Consultancy regards the protection of personal data and the confidentiality required by the legal profession as one of its core obligations.
This is an English translation provided for convenience. In case of any discrepancy, the Turkish version prevails.
This Policy sets out our general approach to protecting the personal data of website visitors, prospective clients, persons who contact us, job and internship applicants and other data subjects.
1. Core Principles
Personal data is processed and retained:
- lawfully and in good faith,
- accurately and, where necessary, kept up to date,
- for specified, explicit and legitimate purposes,
- in a manner that is relevant, limited and proportionate to the purposes of processing,
- for the period set out in the relevant legislation or required for the purposes of processing.
2. Categories of Data Processed
Depending on the nature of the activity, identity, contact, professional experience, education, transaction security, legal transaction, request and complaint, CV, cookie and device data, and other data sent to us may be processed.
Special categories of personal data are processed only where one of the conditions set out in Article 6 of KVKK is met and the necessary technical and administrative measures are in place.
3. Data Minimisation
Our Firm aims to process only the personal data necessary to achieve the specified purposes.
In particular, we recommend that you do not send special categories of personal data, case files, evidence, health records, identity documents or confidential documents through the website contact forms.
4. Purposes of Processing
Personal data may be processed for the purposes of conducting communications, assessing requests for legal services, providing legal services, managing business processes, fulfilling statutory obligations, ensuring information security, conducting human resources and candidate assessment processes, and protecting legal rights.
5. Retention
Personal data is retained only for the period set out in the relevant legislation or required for the purposes of processing.
When the retention period expires and there is no other legal ground requiring the processing of personal data, the data is erased, destroyed or anonymised.
For job and internship applications, data may be retained for the necessary legal and operational period after the application for the relevant position has been concluded. If longer retention in a candidate pool for future positions is required, the candidate's separate explicit consent is obtained.
6. Data Security
Bilgin & Albayrak applies reasonable and appropriate technical and administrative security measures to prevent:
- unlawful processing of personal data,
- unlawful access to personal data,
- loss, alteration or unauthorised disclosure of personal data.
Access is restricted on the basis of role and authorisation.
7. Confidentiality Specific to the Legal Profession
Information and documents obtained in the course of legal services provided by our Firm are handled not only under data protection obligations but also under the professional secrecy and confidentiality obligations arising from the Attorneyship Law and professional rules.
However, sending a message to our Firm through the website does not, in itself, establish a lawyer-client relationship.
8. Third-Party Service Providers
We may obtain support from third-party service providers for technical infrastructure, hosting, email, security, website operation and similar services.
Where personal data is shared with such parties, sharing is limited to the data required, and the legal and technical measures required under KVKK are taken.
9. Cross-Border Transfers
Where service providers based abroad are used or data otherwise needs to be transferred abroad, the appropriate condition set out in Article 9 of KVKK is applied and the necessary safeguards are provided.
10. Your Rights
To exercise your rights under Article 11 of KVKK or to obtain information about the processing of your personal data, you may contact our Firm at info@bilginalbayrak.av.tr.
11. Changes to this Policy
This Policy may be updated in line with changes in legislation, decisions of the Personal Data Protection Board, the website infrastructure or our Firm's data processing activities.
The current version applies from the date it is published on the website.